House - Bioclimatic Tropical Villa in Vietnam
Architects: mlnp architects
Area: 105 m²
Year: 2021
Photographs:Jinbo Choi
Manufacturers: American Standard, Boral, Custom made, DOMUS METAL, Legrand, NOVITA 208, YOUNGLIM
Lead Architects: Myung Ho Lee, Eui Jin Park
Text description provided by the architects. T3 ARCHITECTS and KANOPÉA Architecture Studio designed this weekend's Villa with a truly Sustainable approach tailor-made for Tropical conditions: hot weather, heavy rains, wind (as we are close to the sea), insects, and other wildlife… With the existing site being partially covered by a forest, the T3 Team decided to locate the Villa under the trees (to get shadow and thermal comfort) but have the main facade on the forest’s line to get a very nice view of the tropical garden and pool.
The lime plastering on exterior walls was made using local sand sourced from site excavations. It brings a natural effect to the house and makes it unique with the Arugal approach (low carbon footprint + geo-sourced materials). In terms of the Interior, the design is voluntary minimalist (to limit maintenance and make operation easy). Tailor-made cement tiles, loose furniture in solid wood, and plywood for false ceilings bring both a Vietnamese touch and coziness to the Villa. Lighting designed by Kobi Studio will be contrasted to preserve the darkness of the sky (and respect the rhythm of nature around) and only focus the light where it is necessary (reading corner, dining and kitchen areas, bathroom, and bedrooms).
Guests have their own buildings to get privacy. It also creates a buffer area from the small road (to block the potential noise and keep a high degree of privacy). The Architecture follows bioclimatic principles, with a large insulated roof to cover the different functions of the house. Common areas are naturally ventilated (no AC, just efficient ceiling fans) to save energy and preserve the tropical feeling. The 2 bedrooms are properly insulated (rice husk for the roof, light concrete blocks for walls, double-glazing doors, and windows) to keep the cold from the AC.